


Mountain Pines In The Snow

by MelFX179



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Betrayal, Canon Compliant, Child Death, Emotional Hurt, F/M, Family Tragedy, Ghosts, HIV/AIDS, Haunted Houses, Homosexuality, Injured Mulder, Sad with a Happy Ending, Season/Series 05, Snow, Snowed In, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-30
Updated: 2017-02-11
Packaged: 2018-09-20 22:30:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 11,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9518786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelFX179/pseuds/MelFX179
Summary: A snowstorm forces Mulder, Scully and three strangers to spend the night in an abandoned lodge. When one of them dissapeares, the others try to figure out what happened and risk their lives themselves.





	1. October 28 1997, 3.30 pm

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The X-Files.  
> Only my second fic, so please be gentle ;)  
> Originally, I only wanted to write about ghosts and snow and Mulder and Scully being snowed in but then the story turned into something more serious and sad and I don't really know what had gotten into me.  
> You should know that there are no bad guys here, I am not blaming anybody but I am taking the side of the deceived (I'm not even sure that's what it is) wife.  
> English is not my first language, please excuse grammar/spelling/vocabulary mistakes.

The snow fell heavily onto the rural Colorado highway, making it harder to drive by the minute while the destination of the 1996 Ford Taurus, Denver, Colorado, was still some 60 miles ahead.

Although it was only 3.30 pm, it was already getting dark and the rental had to slow down to 15 mph, to not end up in a snow bank.

It wasn’t the only car travelling on the street, though. In both directions, there were a few other vehicles trying to get home or to their respective destinations before dark or before the snow would make their journeys impossible to continue.

Which happened right now.

As if it had just been playing with those humans in their metallic shells, the wind and snowfall increased, leaving the drivers with zero visibility and overburdening the windshield wipers.

The traffic came to a halt.

++++

“I hope this doesn’t last long. I don’t want to get snowed in and we don’t have much time before our flight departs from DEN,” Special Agent Dana Scully exclaimed obviously annoyed.

She looked outside the window. They were surrounded by wilderness and before the storm had taken their sight completely, she could see the mountains. To the left, guard railings protected cars and their drivers from falling into the abyss that found itself right where the pavement ended. To the right, rocks and trees lined the side.

Rocks and trees for endless miles.

They hadn’t seen a single building recently, although there was a ski-resort they had passed a couple of hours ago. The skiing season hadn’t begun yet and this blizzard was more like a first announcement of the forthcoming winter. It was heavier though than the forecast had anticipated, surprising authorities and local businesses alike.

“Scully, I hate to break this to you but there’s a slight chance you’ll be stuck with me for just another night,” her partner, Special Agent Fox Mulder replied, slightly amused.

“Don’t say that, Mulder!” Scully warned “You know that I need to be back home by tomorrow as I have an appointment.”

“Having a date, huh?” Mulder leered at her curiously.

“Hmm, yes I do actually.”

“Who’s the lucky bastard?”

Was there a hint of jealousy in his voice, Scully mused.

“Just somebody from back in the day, you know?”

“Old friend from school then?”

“No, more recently. Quantico, actually.” Scully was beginning to enjoy this; Her partner was chewing his bottom lip already. Definitely a sign of jealousy.

“I see.”

“We were romantically involved for a short period of time,” Scully continued. “It didn’t work out, though. I was about to be transferred to Washington and he didn’t want to commute. Neither did I. So, we split up. Like I said, we only had been together shortly, so it didn’t result in heartbreak or anything.”

“Okay.”

“Yeah, and a couple of days ago, he called me and told me he was in town for a lecture on forensic science and asked me out for coffee and I said yes, because I still like him. That’s tomorrow.”

“Good for you,” Mulder said in a casual voice but his grip on the wheel and his white knuckles showed that he wasn’t actually that casual about it.

Scully decided to end his torture.

“I’m just kidding, Mulder. I’m having coffee with my mom tomorrow. I’ve been so busy the past few weeks that we didn’t have time to meet and chat.”

She secretly added that he was the reason she didn’t actually have the time or nerve to go on real dates.

If he was relieved, it only showed by his grip loosening.

“Scully, I’m sorry you haven’t been able to see your mom in a while. I know how strong your bond is, especially after your… (cancer)… after you’ve been released from the hospital and I know that I am the reason you haven’t been able to see her as often as you would have liked. I know that and I’m sorry. Really sorry, Scully, and I can’t thank you enough for continuing on with me. For believing in what we do is right, even when I had lost my faith.”

When had this conversation taken such a dramatic turn?

“Mulder. I chose to take this path with you. I chose to make your quest our quest. Even if we’re not agreeing and even when your theories sometimes sound just batcrap crazy to me. I chose the X Files as I chose you. There is no need to blame yourself for anything,” she breathed and the inside of the car fell silent.

++++

By 4.45 pm it was clear that they wouldn’t make their flight. The storm had abated and they were able to continue their journey but the snow was too much and they were merely creeping along.

“Scully, I’m sorry,” Mulder said again. He felt miserable.

“I guess we have to find a place to stay the night,” Scully simply stated. “If there’s a landline, I’ll try to call my mom. My cellphone doesn’t have reception in these parts. Maybe we can still get a flight out early tomorrow.”

“A couple of miles back, I saw a sign saying that Mountain Pine Lodge wasn’t far. I’ll stop there, maybe they’re open. If not, we’ll break in,” Mulder exclaimed.

“I hope they’re open and I hope they have room-service and a room with a bathtub. I’m starving and in need of some relaxation.”

If stranded, Scully wanted classy.

“We’ll know soon. Look, right there!” Mulder said, pointing at a sign that marked the turnoff and the lodge’s location 1.5 miles ahead.


	2. October 28 1997, 5.00 pm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They break into Mountain Pine Lodge (it is, after all, an emergency situation).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've never been to Colorado but google streetview tells me it's beautiful! :)  
> October 28 is my mom's birthday.

From the turnoff, a steep bypass lead to the lodge. The road’s condition was even worse than the highway’s and Mulder secretly doubted that their car’s tires would get enough grip to climb up to their supposed shelter.

Unfortunately, his bad feeling proved true when after a couple of yards the wheels suddenly spun and the car wouldn’t move.

“Seems the road’s iced over. There’s no moving on in this thing,” He stated. “I’ll park on the curb and we’ll hike up there, alright? We should get there in half an hour, I guess.”

Scully nodded and Mulder parked the car. They took their overnight bags as well as weapons and flashlights – it was pitch-black already – and began their hike up to Mountain Pine Lodge.

++++

Their ascent was slow and exhausting. Both agents didn’t wear appropriate boots (Scully was happy not to be wearing heels. Must have been foresight, she thought) and kept slipping on the icy ground. The snow soaked their dress pants and they began to freeze. The bypass was hardly recognizable in the light of their flashlights.

Finally, after 65 minutes, they reached two huge stone columns which marked the gateway to the lodge’s site.

Mulder’s heart sank. The lodge was dark and he couldn’t make out any car in the parking lot in front of the main entrance. He didn’t say anything but stubbornly kept walking towards the entrance. Scully followed close behind.

Mulder pushed the handle. The door was locked. He could hear Scully’s teeth chatter behind him and he turned around to look at her. Her lips were blue and she was shaking badly so he made a decision.

“I’m going to pick the lock. There’s no way we’ll get back to the car and you urgently need to get warm.”

Scully didn’t object. Mulder put down his bag and rifled through it, looking for his lock pick-kit.

With numb fingers he put the lock pick in the lock and fiddled about until the latch opened.

“Open sesame,” he said with a smile and held the door open for Scully to enter first before he followed her.

Once inside, they swept the beams of their flashlights across the lobby and Scully pointed to the reception desk.

“I’ll get us two rooms and leave a note for the staff just in case.”

“Ok. I’ll check out the vending machines. Maybe the power hasn’t been switched off entirely and they’re still working.”

They separated and Scully went over to the reception desk while Mulder entered a small room with a sign that read ‘vending machines’ at the far end of the lobby.

When Scully had picked two double-rooms (why not?) and scribbled a short note which she left together with her business card, she tried the landline. The phone was dead. (Great.)

After that, she went over to Mulder to hand him his keys.

“Power’s off. I’m calling this an emergency and break into the vending machine,” he said with a smirk and a nod to his lock-pick.

They both took some candy bars (no sunflower seeds) and bottles of water and went to their respective rooms to get changed.

Scully was the first to be ready and returned to the lobby.

Half way through it, there was loud banging on the front door through which they had entered.


	3. October 28 1997, 6.45 pm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's getting cozy, other people are stranded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story is 100% different from my first one ;)  
> Thank you for reading!

Scully spun around in surprise, her flashlight pointing towards the door. She couldn’t see who had knocked through the reflection but Mulder had heard it, too and came rushing back.

“What’s going on?” he asked alarmed.

“Someone’s outside. Did you lock the door again?”

“Yeah, just to be sure. I’ll check.”

Mulder went over to the door and opened it.

“Thank god! We thought we’d have to camp in the car,” Scully heard a male voice from the outside.

“Come on in!” Mulder invited and held the door open for two people, a man and a woman, to enter.

“This is my partner. Dana Scully. We’re FBI agents and permitted ourselves entry to this building. My name is Fox Mulder.” Mulder identified themselves and flashed his badge.

“I’m Robert and this is my wife Carol. Spencer. Robert and Carol Spencer. I’m an insurance broker and Carol is a nurse at the Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs. We’re from Glenwood Springs and were heading to Lakewood to visit Carol’s sister but the snowstorm took us by surprise and we didn’t want to turn around, so we decided to come up here and get a room for the night,” Robert blurted, slightly intimidated by the badge.

“Don’t worry. We’re in the same position. We were on our way to Denver airport. This is a case of emergency, so we were entitled to enter this building. You’re with us now, so if you’re afraid you’ll be charged with burglary, don’t be!” Scully explained and the couple visibly relaxed.

“To be honest, I don’t think we’ll be the only ones stranded here. There were more cars on the highway and they’re probably not getting any further than us,” Mulder added and unsurprisingly turned out to be right.

++++

He had locked the door again in order to avoid any unwanted visitors, like black bears or mountain lions. Who knew what they were capable of and he had read reports and seen it in TV how easily wildlife broke into human habitats. He didn’t feel like taking chances. Furthermore, he would be able to keep track of who stayed with them in the building. Sometimes it was good to be paranoid.

Not long after Robert and Carol had returned from room 103 they had chosen for themselves (close to 101 which Mulder and 102 which Scully occupied), there was another knock on the door.

The four were sitting in front of a fire Scully had started in the lobby’s huge fireplace that sat in the center and munching candy bars and salt crackers from the vending machine.

Mulder got up and went to the door.

“Hi, mind if I come in?” another male voice asked.

“Not at all,” Mulder replied “come on in.”

“Thanks dude. What a freaking mess out there, ain’t that right?” the man said and curiously looked around. “This place ain’t open, or is it? You guys don’t look like any of you works here.”

“You’re right. We’re stranded just like you are,” Mulder explained. “This is Special Agent Scully, Mr. and Mrs. Spencer, I am Special Agent Mulder,” he introduced themselves.

“The Feds, huh? What have the Mister and Missus done?”

“Nothing. Like I said, we’re stranded. Mr. and Mrs. Spencer have stranded, too. What’s your name if I may ask?”

“Jesse Abrahams,” the man introduced himself with a tip to his Denver Broncos cap.

“Alright, Jesse. Why don’t you choose a room for yourself and hang out with us by the fire?” Mulder suggested.

“Sounds good, man. I’m just pretty tired, you know? I’ve been on the road the past seven hours. I need to catch some z’s.”

“Sure. No problem. We’ll be down here a little longer. I’d recommend to keep watch during the night, though. Mind if we wake you in a couple of hours to take a shift?”

“That’s cool with me. I get a gun or something for the watch?” Jesse said with a smirk.

“I’m sure we won’t need that. Sleep well.”

Jesse nodded to the other three, went to the reception desk to get a key and disappeared in the hallway.

“Party of Five.” Mulder exclaimed.


	4. October 28 1997, 7.30 pm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What's the secret of room 206? The mystsery unfolds.

“Agents,” Carol spoke after they had been sitting quietly by the fire for a while “please excuse me. I’m a little exhausted myself. I had the graveyard shift last night and didn’t sleep much since.”

Mulder and Robert got up to see her off, while Scully sympathetically smiled at her.

“Good night, Carol. See you in the morning,” she said.

“I’ll stay up a little longer, honey. See you later.” Robert hugged and kissed his wife.

“Good night Carol,” Mulder said and Carol left for her and Robert’s room.

“Robert. If it’s ok for you, I’d like Scully and me to sweep this place. We weren’t been able to do so since we arrived and I want to make sure there isn’t anybody here but us. It would be unfortunate if there was staff here somewhere and they thought we’re burglars – which we technically are – and shoot us down before we got to explain ourselves.”

“That’s ok, Agent Mulder. If there are other arrivals, shall I let them in or do you want me to stall them until you get back?”

“You’re very considerate, Robert.” Mulder smiled “let the people in but maybe just keep them in the lobby until we get back.”

“Will do, Sir!” Robert almost saluted.

“Mulder’s fine, Robert.” Mulder said still smiling and with that, beckoned Scully to join him.

++++

“Hang on Mulder! Let me check if there’s a master key at the reception desk,” Scully stopped him, went over to where the keys were and was lucky.

“There should be two sets of keys, one’s missing and I have the other one now. I suppose the clerk or hotel manager has the other,” she stated.

Mulder frowned. “Yeah, could be. You don’t happen to know if the two sets were hanging there when we arrived, do you?”

“Sorry, no I don’t. Why, what’s wrong Mulder?” Scully regarded him carefully.

“Nothing. I just hate surprises. Come on, let’s do this.”

++++

The Mountain Pine Lodge was a two story log building, with 10 guest rooms, spa and pool area, dining room, bar and a spacious deck outside, overlooking the range – if you could see it. Not to mention the lobby with its prominent fireplace, leather armchairs and couches, padded animals and antlers.

Behind the dining room, there was the kitchen and a laundry as well as staff offices and other rooms including a storage room for skis and equipment.

Mulder and Scully searched the offices and public places first, finding nothing, before taking closer looks at the guest rooms on the first and second floor.

Their rooms were on the first floor, on opposing sides. Robert and Carol’s room were next to Mulder’s. Jesse had chosen 106 at the end of the hallway – the suite. (Why not?)

Next to the elevator and stairs, stood the ice-machine as well as another vending machine with soft drinks.

The floor was thickly carpeted and swallowed their footsteps. Between the doors – two on each side plus the suite at the end - hung scenic paintings on the walls.

Scully and Mulder unlocked each door quietly, after knocking gently as they didn’t want to wake Jesse and Carol, and peeked inside with their flashlights illuminating the rooms. All were empty so they went on to the second floor.

When they reached the room located right above the suite on the first floor, Scully paused and looked confused.

“The master key won’t work,” she stated and tried again to open the door for Mulder to see. “It fits in the lock but I can’t turn it. It’s the wrong key.”

“Maybe it’s the VIP suite. I’ll run downstairs and grab the original keys for 206.” Mulder suggested.

“I’ll wait here.”

Mulder turned and jogged back to the lobby.

++++

“Everything ok, Mulder?” Robert asked, when Mulder came back to the lobby.

“Yeah, everything’s fine. I’m just checking for a key,” Mulder explained. “Everything good at your end, too?”

“No new visitors to report,” Robert said dutifully and grinned.

Mulder smiled back and searched the key board for the key to room 206. The hook for it was missing.

“What the…?” Mulder asked in confusion. 

He turned to check the room’s mailboxes. They ended with 205.

“I’m heading back to Scully,” he informed Robert. “We’re currently on the second floor. Holler if you need us!”

“Sure,” Robert replied and Mulder left the lobby again.


	5. October 28 1997, 9.45 pm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five minus one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the younger ones of you: A discman is a device to play music with. It runs on batteries. A disman is like an ipod, only bigger and you need to put a CD in it in order to listen to music (or audio books) and it only plays one CD at a time ;)   
> Jesse's listening to Korn - in case you are wondering.

“Couldn’t find a key to this room,” Mulder told Scully when he got back to her. “It was strange. There wasn’t even a mailbox for it and made it look like the room doesn’t exist. Made me even more curious to look inside.”

“Are you suggesting there’s a big mystery hiding behind this door, other than that the room could be for private use only, or it’s being renovated? Maybe it’s only used for special guests – you said it yourself…”

“Well, no. I mean, I just want to look inside. You’re probably right – again – but trying to hide a room… You gotta admit it is weird.”

“Whatever Mulder. Go ahead, unlock the secret door,” Scully said with an amused look.

Mulder pouted back at her and eagerly pulled out his lock-pick again but a scream from downstairs intervened his attempt in opening the door.

++++

The agents looked at each other for a second before both rushed to lobby.

Robert had heard it, too and looked at them horrified.

“What was that? Was that a scream?” he asked.

“It sounded like it. Didn’t it come from down here? Outside maybe?” Scully asked.

“No. It definitely came from in here. I thought maybe it was you, Agent Scully!”

“I didn’t scream. We need to check on Carol,” Scully realized and the three rushed upstairs to Robert and Carol’s room.

With shaky hands, Robert used the key to open the door and Mulder entered first, waving his flashlight in one, his gun in the other hand.

The room was empty.

“Carol?” he asked. “Carol, are you here?”

Robert entered behind him.

“Honey? Honey answer me! It’s alright. Come out. Where are you? Carol? CAROL!!!”

But Carol didn’t answer and they also didn’t find her in the adjacent bathroom.

“Maybe she’s in another room,” Scully suggested. “We should have a look around.”

“We’ll check the rooms again. Robert, you stay here in case she comes back,” Mulder ordered.

Robert, looking deeply worried, nodded and sat down on the bed.

“Mulder look!” Scully suddenly said. “The bed hasn’t been laid in at all.”

Both men turned their heads and regarded the bed.

“Wha… What does that mean?” Robert stuttered.

“We shouldn’t draw any overhasty conclusions,” Mulder tried to calm him. “Maybe she forgot something and went out again before she went to bed.”

It was a weak attempt to find an explanation, as she must have passed one of them to do so.

“Why would she do that? Where the hell is she?” Robert yelled in a panicked voice.

“Listen. Maybe we should consider the most obvious option,” Scully pointed out. “She probably is with Jesse.”

“Why would she be with a stranger?” Robert wouldn’t calm down.

“Let’s just check on him, ok? If she’s with him, there’s still enough time to ask why,” Scully explained.

“Robert, I want you to stay here. OK?”

Robert shook his head.

“No, if she’s with him, doing whatever they’re doing, I want to see for myself.”

“I understand that, Robert. But please, trust us and stay here. It’s safer for all of us if you let us check.”

“OK, Mulder. You’re probably right. Just call me when you found her,” Robert sighed.

Mulder and Scully left the room and walked towards suite 106.

“Do you seriously think we’ll find Jesse and Carol in a compromising position?” Scully asked quietly.

“To be honest, I’d prefer that over the possibility that Carol has gone without a trace,” Mulder replied.

They knocked on the door.

Nothing.

They knocked again. Louder.

Nothing.

Mulder banged on the door, shouting Jesse’s name.

Scully interrupted by using the master key and opening the door  
.  
Both agents drew their weapons again and entered the suite.

Jesse’s figure was outlined under the sheets of the bed. He didn’t move.

Mulder carefully approached him, secretly expecting a pool of blood or a crushed skull.

When he touched Jesse and gently rocked him by the shoulder, Jesse startled and jumped from the bed.

“What the fuck?” he shouted and pulled out his earplugs. Music filled the room.

“Uh, sorry Jesse. I didn’t mean to scare you. We knocked on the door and called out for you but you didn’t answer so…” Mulder started.

“Yeah, I was listening to some tunes on my discman. What’s goin’ on? Why are you waving your guns around?” Jesse demanded confused.

“Have you seen Carol after you went to your room? Have you heard anything at all?” Scully asked.

“No, I haven’t. I better fall asleep with music on, so no, didn’t see or hear anything. Why? What is it?”

“Carol’s missing,” Mulder explained. “We heard a scream a couple of minutes ago and went to check on her in her room. She wasn’t there and the bed was untouched. That’s why we came here. We thought that maybe she was with you.”

“Nah. She ain’t with me. Never was.”

“Is she here? Have you found her?” Robert appeared in the door.

“No. She’s not here, Robert,” Scully answered sympathetically.

They all knew the implication.


	6. October 28 1997, 11.20 pm

They had searched the lodge again. Every room, every hallway but Carol remained missing.

They checked outside for fresh footprints which they didn’t find. The snow had covered their initial tracks and there were no new ones.

Now they were standing in front of room 206 and Mulder fiddled with the lock-pick.

“I don’t understand why this isn’t working,” he grunted frustrated. “The lock isn’t jammed but I simply can’t open it.”

“Mind if I tried?” Jesse asked and earned questioning looks from the agents.

“Got experience with these things?” Scully asked in return.

“Let’s just say I have good mechanical skills,” Jesse grinned.

Mulder gave him the tool and watched the man fail in his attempt to open the door.

“What the hell is wrong with that thing?” an annoyed Jesse exclaimed.

Robert grew visibly agitated and paced up and down the hallway.

“We need to find her, we need to find her,” he repeated like a mantra.

“We will find her, Robert. You’ve got to stay calm!” Scully soothed.

“I’ll check for a toolshed,” Mulder informed. “They must have a ladder somewhere and I’ll try to get into this room from the outside.”

“Good thinking, dude! I’ll help ya!” Jesse offered and Mulder nodded after exchanging looks with Scully who silently agreed.

“Robert and I will be staying here, in case Carol comes back.”

With that, Mulder and Jesse turned and went to find a ladder. Scully and the shaken husband stayed behind, returning to Robert and Carol’s room.

++++

Behind the lodge, a little further into the woods, stood the janitor’s workshop.

Mulder and Jesse had found it on the lodge’s map which hung by the reception desk and were lucky when they found the desired ladder.

Together, they carried it back to the lodge and around to the side of the building, where the suite was located.

They positioned the ladder on the wall and Mulder asked Jesse to hold it while he climbed up.

When he reached the window of room 206, he used his flashlight to light inside.

The room was empty.

“What the…?” Mulder muttered.

“What do you see?” He heard Jesse from below.

“I see nothing. Absolutely nothing. The room is empty. No furniture, nothing. I’m going to break the window,” Mulder answered and used the battery magazine to crack the glass.

He then reached inside to unlock the window and slide it open.

In that moment, a violent force blew him back and together with the ladder, he crashed to the ground.


	7. October 29 1997, 00.15 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scully in full doctor's mode and Mulder has an epiphany but (of course) nobody believes him - at first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I'm thanking you for reading :)  
> I'm not a doctor, but I think that's what would be done if it were real.

“Agent Scully! Agent Scully, help!” Jesse came running and screaming back to the Spencer’s room.

“What’s going on? Where’s Mulder?” Scully met him halfway in the hall.

“He fell! Please, you gotta come. He’s injured, ain’t movin’!”

Scully turned pale but instantly, her doctor’s mode kicked in.

“Where is he?” she demanded.

“Outside. Something blew him off the ladder. I didn’t touch him, in case something was broken.”

“Well done, Jesse. Now lead me to him. Robert, follow us please, I might need your assistance, too.”

They went outside to where Mulder laid in the snow.

He was on his back, his right hand bleeding and his eyes were closed. He was unconscious.

The ladder had fallen on him and Scully quickly moved it to the side, before checking the pulse on his neck.

“He’s got a strong pulse, that’s a good sign but we need to get him inside. He’s getting too cold out here and I need to check if he’s got any broken bones,” she explained and just then, Mulder opened his eyes and groaned.

“Don’t move, Mulder. You fell from the second floor. I need to know if you hurt your spine on the impact. Can you feel this?” she pressed his left hand and he nodded. 

Scully then touched his bleeding right hand carefully and again, Mulder nodded.

“I’m sorry to give you cold feet, but I’m taking your shoes off now and you tell me if you feel anything there as well, OK?”

“Yeah.” Mulder said through gritted teeth.

Scully proceeded and let out a sigh of relief when Mulder confirmed that he felt her hands on his feet.

“Alright, Jesse and Robert. I need your help now. We’ll use the ladder as a stretcher. Jesse, you grab him by the armpits and you, Robert, take his legs. I’ll hold his head and on my count to three, we’ll lift him onto the ladder. One. Two. Three.”

Together, they lifted Mulder and carefully placed him on the improvised stretcher.

“Well done, now let’s carry him inside.”

When they lifted him up, Mulder had a final look up at the broken window.

A woman in a white dress looked back at him.

++++

“Scully wait,” Mulder began and looked up again.

The appearance was gone.

“What is it Mulder?”

“Uh, nothing. I thought I saw something,” Mulder replied.

Maybe it was just a trick of light, the sky had cleared and the full moon was shining brightly. Perhaps a reflection from their flashlight beams, he thought.

The three carried Mulder back to the lobby and carefully placed him on one of the heavy oak-tables there.

“OK, let’s get this thing away from underneath him,” Scully ordered and the men swiftly withdrew the ladder.

“Robert. Please go and get some towels and a blanket and look for a first-aid-kit. We need to clean his hand and stop the bleeding.”

Robert did what he was told and disappeared from the lobby.

“Jesse, I need you to help me to get him out of his clothes. Hold him steady for me, would you?”

“Sure thing. Are you a doctor or something?”

“Yes. I am a medical doctor. Now please hold him while I take his jacket off.”

Slowly and carefully, Scully removed Mulder’s clothes until he laid in only his boxer briefs before them.

He was cold and shaking but Scully needed to be able to see if he had broken bones or other open wounds.

In the meantime, Robert had returned and Scully had advised him how to clean Mulder’s wound (a nasty cut on the underside of this right hand, from pinky to wrist) and bandage it.

“You really should do something about your cold hands, Scully. It would be way more pleasurable if I didn’t have to jump every time you touched me,” Mulder joked but he clearly was in pain.

“Glad you didn’t hurt your head, Mulder,” Scully smiled sympathetically. “I’m sorry about the cold hands and the prodding and touching but I’m also happy to tell you that you didn’t break any bones. You just have a contusion of your latissimus dorsi. It’s painful but not life-threatening.”

“Are you telling me, it’s the end of my manhood, Scully?”

“No, Mulder,” Scully sighed. “You simply bruised your back. You can sit up slowly. Here’s a blanket and we’ll hang your clothes up by the fire to dry.”

“Guys, I’d like to know what Agent Mulder saw through the window. Were there any signs of Carol?” Robert asked.

Mulder had sat up on the table and looked at Robert.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t see her. The room was completely empty. It wasn’t even furnished but for a second, after I fell, I swear I saw another woman standing in the window frame before you carried me back inside.”

“Carol? You saw Carol?” Robert asked excitedly.

“No. It wasn’t Carol. She was older but I just saw her briefly and then she was gone. Maybe it was a trick of light.”

“Well, we need to check!” Robert demanded urgently.

“Robert wait. There’s something else I didn’t tell you yet,” Mulder continued. “When I had cracked the window and tried to unlock it from the inside, there was a force. A powerful force which pushed me back out. That’s why I fell. I was literally pushed away.”

Both men and Scully looked at him questioningly.

“Maybe he hit his head.” Jesse suggested.

“Mulder, are you saying that something inside the room pushed you, so you fell but you didn’t see anybody or anything but after you hit the ground you saw a woman in the window but you’re sure it wasn’t her who pushed you?” Scully summarized and went over to her partner again to check if she had overlooked a possible head-injury.

Mulder twisted his head away. “I’m fine Scully. I have no headache, no blurred vision, ergo I have no concussion. I know what I felt. It was powerful!”

The four fell silent before Robert spoke again.

“Whatever. I don’t believe in this mumbo-jumbo crap. I’m going to break through the door and if Carol’s in there, we’re out of here!”

“Robert wait!”

“No, Agent Scully. I won’t waste any more time. I’ll get a fire-axe and I’m going into that room. Don’t try to stop me!” Robert stormed out of the lobby.

“Something is in that room, Scully. You have to believe me. Some force or spirit. A poltergeist even,” Mulder stood up quickly and tried after Robert but swayed and held his back.

Scully was there instantly.

“I want you to lay down again, Mulder. You need some rest and you’re still cold. Jesse and I will go after him.”

Scully guided her partner to one of the plush couches and helped him settle down. She then covered him with the blanket but Mulder already attempted to get back up again.

“Mulder, listen to me: You’re no use to us if you’re running around injured. You might put us in danger, too.” 

She gently pushed her partner back down and this time, Mulder surrendered.

“Be careful Scully. You don’t know what we’re up against!”

From above, one could hear metal crashing against wood.

“Let’s go Jesse. We need to stop Robert.”


	8. October 29 1997, 02.30 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mulder finds out what's going on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this is rather short.

When Scully and Jesse reached Robert, he was already half way through breaking the door – it was too late to stop him.

“It’s really solid,” he panted “but I’m getting through. Carol? Carol can you hear me? I’m coming to get you! Hang in there, honey. I’m almost there!”

The agent and her temporary partner stood and watched, while Robert finally broke through the heavy wood.

When Jesse made a move to get to him, Scully held Jesse back by his arm and whispered “Let him do this alone.”

Again, the axe crashed against the wood and left it splintering.

Finally, Robert had opened a crack big enough for him to grab through and unlock the door from the inside. It sprung open unhindered.

Robert pulled back, lifted the fire-axe as a weapon but then turned back towards Scully.

“May I have your flashlight, Agent Scully?”

“Robert, I don’t think it’s a good idea to go inside,” Scully tried but Robert shook his head.

“Please give me your flashlight!”

Reluctantly, Scully handed her flashlight over and Robert thanked her with a smile.

He turned around again and entered the suite, while Scully and Jesse remained in the hallway.

++++

While Scully, Jesse and Robert were upstairs, Mulder stayed behind in the lobby.

He couldn’t sleep or relax so he got up and slowly walked over to a bookshelf to study its content.

Apart from the common novels which were left behind by former guest, he also found books on Colorado’s flora and fauna, best ski-resorts as well as recent history. One book attracted his attention in particular: It was an old hardback, worn at the edges with stained and loose pages about the history of Mountain Pine Lodge. But just it wasn’t called Mountain Pine Lodge when it was originally built.

Mulder took the book and returned to the couch, beginning to read by the fire.

He had hardly gotten to page three, when he jumped up and – as fast as his condition would allow – ran to the others.


	9. October 29 1997, 02.55 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five minus two and a little bit of badass Scully ;)

“Scully! Scullaaay!” Mulder screamed from the top of his lungs.

Scully turned around to see her partner arrive at the stair head, heavily out of breath and leaning against the railing.

“Mulder,” she shouted and ran towards him “what’s going on? What are you doing?”

She touched his forehead and pulled the blanket that had fallen to the ground back over his shoulders.

“Where’s Robert? He cannot go inside that room,” Mulder wheezed.

“He’s already inside. Why, what’s wrong?”

“We need to get him out of there! I’ll explain later,” Mulder pushed himself from the railing and staggered towards room 206 where Jesse waited with a confused look.

“What’s going on, man? You sure, you’re alright?” he asked but Mulder ignored him and went to the door.

“Robert! Robert, can you hear me?” he shouted without entering the room.

“Agent Mulder? What is it?” Robert asked reappearing near the door.

“Robert. Please, you need to come out of there. I’ll explain everything, just come out of there,” Mulder desperately demanded.

“I need to check the other room first, there are two rooms here and a bathroom and I haven’t yet…” Robert didn’t finish his sentence because suddenly, he was pulled back forcefully, sliding across the floor back into the adjacent room. The door slamming shut behind him.

++++

“Robert!”

“Hey Rob!”

“Robert?”

Mulder, Scully and Jesse shouted simultaneously but after one horrible final scream from the inside, there was nothing to hear from Robert.

“Why are we standing around like some stupid fucks? Gimme your gun, I’ll get him out!” Jesse tried to grab Scully’s gun from the holster but her FBI training had taught her to counteract moves like his and a millisecond later, Jesse was face-down on the floor, Scully kneeling on top of him.

“Calm down, Jesse and NEVER try that again,” she threatened in a voice as cold as the outside temperatures.

“Sorry, sorry, sorry,” Jesse winced, “I didn’t mean to do that. I was overreacting!”

Scully got up, brushed her clothes and put her gun into the holster before helping Jesse up.

“I understand you’re frightened and we’re all tired, but you have to let us do our job. You understand?”

“Yes, Ma’am! I’m truly sorry.”

Scully turned towards Mulder who still stood in the frame of 206.

“I found this in a bookshelf,” he said holding the book up.

“It’s a book about the history of Mountain Pine Lodge, dating back to 1928. But it wasn’t a hotel back then, it was the private mansion of Edward and Florence Baker. Edward being a mine operator and Florence was a florist.”

Mulder opened the book and showed page three to Scully and Jesse.

“This is a picture of the couple, taken in 1932, five years before Florence Baker died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head,” Mulder let out a long breath, “Scully, this is the woman I saw in the window.”


	10. October 29 1997, 03.20 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The tragic story of Florence and Edward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's now why I've tagged HIV/AIDS, homosexuality, betrayal, child's death. I hope you bear with me, it's a little dark. I've also always wanted to try that thing with the voice recorder, but I'm a coward and afraid of ghosts.

“Mulder, if what you’re saying is true, we are dealing with a woman who committed suicide 60 years ago. It doesn’t come as a surprise to you but I don’t necessarily believe in ghosts. So, what other explanation do we have and how can we save Carol as well as Robert?”

The three were again sitting in the lobby after Mulder (whose clothes had dried and he was dressed again) had successfully convinced them not to pursuit Robert, even though he felt bad about it.

“I know it sounds crazy Scully and you’re probably questioning my sanity right now but this IS the woman I saw.”

“Dude, you fell on your head. Maybe you have somehow unconsciously seen a picture of that lady somewhere. There are paintings on the walls everywhere. And then, I don’t know, when you fell, you had a flashback or something. I once read somewhere that when you die, the last thing you see gets burned in your retina. Maybe, in a way, that’s what happened to you, too,” Jesse tried to explain.

Mulder shook his head vigorously. “I know what I saw. I saw Florence Baker and she wasn’t much older than in that picture,” he pointed at the open book on the table.

“OK, Mulder. I’ll bear with you. If this really is Florence’s ghost, what does she want? Why did she shoot herself?” Scully asked.

“It’s in that book, Scully. The first chapters are about Florence and Edward and the tragedy that surrounded them.

They had been happily married for a couple of years and built this lodge until one day, Florence caught Edward with their cook. All the while, he had been living a double life and was secretly gay. Back in the mid 1930s, being gay wasn’t something you’d go public with – especially not as a CEO who had over 50 employees and was a well-respected man.   
He asked Florence not to divorce him and she agreed to keep up the charade for some regular ‘pocket-money’ which she could spend freely. They had separated bedrooms and literally lived separate lives unless for public appearances.

At some point, Florence decided that she didn’t only want to spend money on booze but also on pleasure. She hired callboys. Of course they weren’t called that in the 30s and you wouldn’t find an ad in the local newspaper, but she had the means and the money, so that wasn’t a problem. It came what must: She got pregnant. Officially, it was Edward’s child and their friends and families were delighted. Nobody had a clue.

One day, Florence had a tête-a-tête in a roadhouse outside of town when one of her girlfriends appeared. She surprised them in a compromising position in the ladies room and from there, she spiraled down. The people talked, called her whore and cheater. Edward, being afraid for his own reputation did nothing to protect her and when in return she tried to go public with his homosexuality, claiming that the baby wasn’t even his, of course the people didn’t believe her.

She became a persona non grata in the town she grew up in. That night when she killed herself, she had a miscarriage at six months pregnant and that must have triggered her.   
She shot herself in her own bedroom in front of which we are standing right now.”

++++

“What became of Edward?” Scully asked quietly.

“He continued his secret life and remained a highly regarded citizen of Chesterfield until he passed away in 1958. Rumors say, he had a strange undiagnosable disease and died a shadow of his former self.”

“You mean he died of AIDS?”

“That’s my guess, although AIDS didn’t officially appear until Gaëtan Dugas in 1984.”

They stared into the fire, contemplating.

“Beside all this human tragedy of the past, what are we gonna do about our Mister and Missus,” Jesse disrupted the silence “and why the hell can’t we go inside that ladies’ room?”

“I believe 206 to be a so called ‘Hot Spot’,” Mulder explained, “where the paranormal activity is at its highest. I think Florence’s ghost is confined to this room – her death-place – as the center of it. If we go in there, we’re likely to become victims of her rage as well.”

“So, you think the reason why there is no key to this room and no mailbox is that the staff knew about the room being haunted?” Scully asked.

“Yes. I think that they ‘hid’ the room by giving it a number but they never sold it to guests. Imagine this: You’re one of those people with chronic curiosity. Wouldn’t you be gravitated towards a ‘No Trespassing’ or ‘Private’ sign? So, to avoid unwanted visitors, you simply take away the need to investigate. If we hadn’t checked every room in our attempt to find Carol, we would have probably never noticed 206 to be different.”

“But what about Robert and Carol? Are they still alive? If they are, how do we save them?” Scully asked again.

“We should try to contact Florence.”

“You mean like a séance or something?” Jesse asked.

“Well yeah. It’s just that none of us is a psychic medium. There’s another way to communicate with spirits. Scully, do you have your voice recorder?”

Scully nodded.

“For what, dude? Honestly, I think you’re full of it. How can you keep up with this creep, Scully?” Jesse’s voice had turned a nod more aggressive.

“Agent Mulder has a profound knowledge of the paranormal, Jesse. What I’ve witnessed tonight definitely falls into that category. I trust him and I believe we do the right thing,” Scully came to Mulder’s defense and earned a surprised, yet thankful look from her partner.

“Whatever. You’re the Feds and I’m just a truck-driver, so whatever you say’s the law,” Jesse shrugged.

“OK, I got my recorder as well. Maybe we also find another tape recorder and we need a tape. It doesn’t matter if it’s recorded. We’ll re-record it!”

++++

They spread out and returned a couple of minutes later with a tape recorder and a couple of music cassettes.

“OK,” Mulder said while preparing the machines, “what we’re going to do now is we’ll place them in and in front of 206 and press the record button. Then we’ll ask questions at regular intervals with pauses in between. After we’ve asked what we want to know, we’ll stop the recording and rewind the tapes. Hopefully, we’ll be able to hear Florence’s reply in the gaps between our questions.”

“Have you ever done that before?” Scully asked.

“Yeah, we tried that in Oxford once,” Mulder replied hesitantly.

“Did it work?”

“In our case, it didn’t,” Mulder admitted, “but I’ve read about sessions, where it worked and where in the end, the ones conducting the experiment had a full conversation on tape.”  
Jesse still didn’t believe it would work and kept shaking his head. He said nothing, though.

“Let’s think of what we want to know and then we’ll give it a shot,” Mulder requested and they sat down again to ponder the questions for Florence’s ghost.


	11. October 29 1997, 04.00 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ghostbusting.

They had positioned the tape recorder in the door to 206 and had pushed, as far as the improvised rods made of broomsticks and thread would allow, the other two voice recorders into the room itself. One to the left, the other to the right.

Shortly before, Mulder had pressed the ‘Record’-button.

“We would like to speak to Florence Baker,” he said in a calm and clear voice, loud enough to be recorded by all three devices and then paused long enough for a possible answer before he continued.

“Florence, are our friends Carol and Robert Spencer with you?”

“Florence, we would like them to come back to us. Will you let them go?”

“Florence, we would like to help you. What can we do to help you?”

Mulder looked at Scully and Jesse, quietly asking if that was ok and when both of them nodded, he pulled the machines back from the room and hit the ‘Stop’ button.

“What now?” Scully asked.

“We’ll head back downstairs to evaluate our recording,” Mulder said and they returned to the lobby.

++++

“You know, I’ve been thinking,” Jesse began “that door had been locked the entire time. No one got in OR out. But now the door’s smashed. Can’t the ‘ghost’”, he made quote signs in the air, “now roam freely in this place?”

“Usually ghosts or spirits are tied to a certain space and if Florence’s sphere included the entire lodge, we would have probably witnessed that by now – with our without door. No, I think that her spirit remains confined to 206 and that’s why the hotel management doesn’t rent this room.”

That seemed to soothe Jesse and the tension in his shoulders eased.

“So let’s check it out then!” He pointed to the recording devices.

One by one, Scully rewound the tapes and pressed the ‘Play’ button on the first voice recorder that had been placed to the left inside 206.

Mulder’s voice was quieter but still clearly audible.

“We would like to speak to Florence Baker.”

“Florence, are our friends Carol and Robert Spencer with you?”

“Florence, we would like them to come back to us. Will you let them go?”

“Florence, we would like to help you. What can we do to help you?”

Apart from the usual random noise, there was nothing.

“What now?” Scully looked at Mulder questioningly and visibly tired.

“We shouldn’t give up before we haven’t listened to the other tapes,” Mulder plead.

“You know what? I’m honestly sick of this BS. The sun goes up in a couple of hours and then I’m outta here. You’re the Feds, so you deal with this situation. Why should I care?” Jesse spat, now really angry.

Mulder said nothing but stared into the flames.

“Mulder,” Scully quietly said to him, “I think Jesse’s right. We should wait until the sun comes up, head back to the car, drive into town and go to the police. We’ll ask them to send heavy duty equipment and an SAR team and hopefully we’ll be able to get Robert and Carol out of that room. I agree with you that a strange force is in that place, although I’m not sure what exactly it is. Maybe some kind of electromagnetic field, but we are definitely not equipped for this. And we’re very tired and prone to seeing things that are most likely not the way, they seem to us.”

“Well, why don’t you and Jesse take a nap then?” Mulder suggested defeated. “I’ll go through the other tapes and keep watch, just in case.”

“Mulder...”

“It’s OK, Scully. Trust me. I won’t do anything but listen to the tapes and we’ll do what you suggested and leave in the morning,” Mulder said and ran his hands through his hair.

“We’ll stay down here with you.”

“No, it’s ok. I’m probably going to replay those tapes a couple of times and I don’t want to disturb you. Go to bed, Scully. I’ll wake you when the sun’s up.”

“Alright then, good morning and good night,” Jesse got up and left for his room.

“Mulder, you sure you’re ok?”

“Yeah. Like you said, just a little tired,” Mulder gave her a small smile.

“I’ll see you later then.”

“Good night, Scully!”


	12. October 29 1997, 04.30 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ghostly conversations.

Scully was right, Mulder knew it, but he couldn’t think of sleep right now. And – more importantly – he didn’t want to give up on Carol and Robert.

He took the tape recorder that had stood in front of the room and turned it on.

“We would like to speak to Florence Baker.”

~~~~~~~~ I’m here ~~~~~~~~

Mulder froze and the hairs on his neck stood up.

It was quiet and sounded like a whisper behind static noise, but it was definitely a voice. He wasn’t imagining it.

“Florence, are our friends Carol and Robert Spencer with you?”

~~~~~~~~ Yes ~~~~~~~~

“Florence, we would like them to come back to us. Will you let them go?”

~~~~~~~~ They are happy here ~~~~~~~~

“Florence, we would like to help you. What can we do to help you?”

~~~~~~~~ No one can help me ~~~~~~~~

Mulder was fascinated and shocked at the same time. 

To have actual proof of a spirit, to have its voice recorded and witnessing it first hand was something he had only dreamt of.

What shocked him was the hopelessness in Florence’s statement. No one could help her. Why? With what?

He turned on the third device, the one closest to Florence’s former bedroom and on this one, her voice was even clearer, yet still overlain by static.

But there was something else. Something that sounded like sobs. Carol? Was Carol crying?

Mulder decided to try to contact Florence (and Carol) once more but without waking Scully and Jesse. Scully deserved to sleep and Jesse… Well, Mulder thought he was better off doing it by himself.

++++

This time, he put all three devices closer to the bedroom door.

Before, he had tried to call Carol and Robert again, but there was no reply.

Mulder fought to believe that this would possibly mean that at least Carol was dead.

He didn’t want to give up hope.

The agent had considered his new questions carefully, not wanting to give Florence the chance to answer them inaccurately.

After taking another, deep breath, Mulder said: “Florence are you still there?”

“Are my friends Carol and Robert dead?”

“Are you punishing them for what happened to you and Edward?”

“Did Carol have something you wanted?”

“Is that why you took her in the first place?”

“Florence, you said no one could help you. Tell me at least what you need help with.”

“Florence, I still want to help you. Will you let me come in?”

“Will you let me and Carol and Robert back out again, too?” (Better safe than sorry!)

After giving Florence enough time to answer, Mulder carefully pulled the recorders back and pressed ‘Stop’.

This time, he stayed in the hallway, simply sat down on the floor and rewound the tapes there.

He composed himself before hitting the ‘Play’ button.

++++

“Florence are you still there?”

~~~~~~~~ Yes ~~~~~~~~

“Are my friends Carol and Robert dead?”

~~~~~~~~ No ~~~~~~~~

“Are you punishing them for what happened to you and Edward?”

~~~~~~~~ No ~~~~~~~~

“Did Carol have something you wanted?”

~~~~~~~~ Yes ~~~~~~~~

“Is that why you took her in the first place?”

~~~~~~~~ I want what’s mine ~~~~~~~~

“Florence, you said no one could help you. Tell me at least what you need help with.”

~~~~~~~~ I want my baby ~~~~~~~~

“Florence, I still want to help you. Will you let me come in?”

~~~~~~~~ Yes ~~~~~~~~

“Will you let me and Carol and Robert back out again, too?” 

~~~~~~~~ I want my baby ~~~~~~~~


	13. October 29 1997, 04.55 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Digging up the past.

Suddenly, Mulder knew what was going on. 

This was the spirit’s desperate attempt in becoming a mother after all.

When he and Robert tried to get to her/to Carol, Florence had felt threatened again and attacked.

He looked at his watch. Scully wanted to leave when the sun was up, that gave him around 90 minutes to complete his task. 

He was convinced (Scully would call it insane) to do this on his own, especially now that Florence trusted him enough to let him in.

At least that was what Mulder hoped.

++++

In the lobby, Mulder picked up the book about Mountain Pine Lodge again.

He continued to read until only a few pages later, he found what he was looking for.

Mulder quietly left the building, taking the book and his flashlight with him, and headed back towards the janitor’s workshop from which he grabbed a spade.

The book gave him approximate directions but the snow made it hard to find his way.

Finally, he saw the dressed stone.

It stood unremarkably next to a huge pine tree, almost completely covered by snow.

Mulder wiped the snow off the stone. The simple inscription read “Rest in Peace”. 

He paused for a moment and swallowed. This would hopefully conclude the tragic story of two people, both being victims of their time.

With grim determination, Mulder took the spade and began to dig.

++++

Fortunately, the snow had prevented the ground from freezing, so it wasn’t impossible to dig but it was exhausting and his back ached.

After a couple of minutes, sweat was trickling down his face but suddenly, the edge hit an obstacle.

Mulder put the spade aside and continued to clear the hole with his bare hands until he had fully uncovered a small metal box.

He lifted it from its icy prison, stood up and stretched.

Knowing that he needed to check the box’s content, he opened the lid as carefully as his numb fingers would allow and silently looked upon what had been hidden from the world for so long.


	14. October 29 1997, 05.40 am

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost there ;) Thanks for hanging on!

Mulder returned to the lodge, carefully carrying the box like a relic.

In the lobby, he wiped and rubbed his hands – also to revive the sensation – and put a clean band-aid on his wound, before he continued on to, what he hoped would be, his final rescue mission.

++++

Scully couldn’t sleep.

She heard her partner moving up and down the stairs and she also thought, he left the lodge and returned about an hour later.

At that point, she had considered getting up and question him about what he was doing but when she had left him, she saw that all too familiar look on his face.

It was that look that said ‘I know I’m all alone in this but I won’t give up until I have uncovered the truth, so don’t try to stop me’.

Usually shortly after that, she wouldn’t be surprised to find out she’d been ditched once again.

But now, curiosity (and fear for him) had gotten the better of her and she quietly got up and left her room. She already knew where she’d find him.

++++

Mulder hesitantly stood in the door case of 206.

He should have left Scully a note, just in case, he pondered.

“Mulder, what are you doing?”

Her voice brought him out of his dilemma and he turned to see her standing behind him. Damn that carpet!

“Hi Scully, uh, I thought you were asleep,” he said insecurely.

“I couldn’t sleep and I heard you rummaging around and then you left and I got worried and when you came back, I thought I needed to check. What have you got there?”

“Scully, please hear me out before you put the straitjacket on me,” he begged. “I have made contact with Florence. She answered me, Scully! I know what she wants and I think I can save Carol and Robert.”

“Mulder, we’ve listened to the tape. There was nothing on.”

“It was too far away, Scully. Florence was on the other ones. Here, I’ll show you!” Mulder put down the box and quickly rewound the voice recorder to play his recording.

Scully stared at it in disbelief when she heard a woman’s voice.

“Mulder this is…,” she began.

“Florence,” Mulder finished the sentence and gave her a warm smile. “She is talking to me!”

“Mulder this is incredible. But are you sure it’s not a hoax?”

“What do you mean?”

“What I mean is that, please forgive this train of thought, we don’t know anything about these people. Carol and Robert and Jesse. What if they made this all up to fool us?”

“Why would they do that, Scully? And what are the odds that, on a day like yesterday, anybody would show up here so they could play this charade? And by the way, I don’t think that Florence’s voice sounded like Carol’s at all.”

“People can alter their voices Mulder.”

“Why? Scully, tell me why!”

“Maybe the plan was to rob us and when we identified ourselves as FBI agents, their plan went to hell but they had to keep going to keep their cover.”

“Well, if this really is so, then I should be in no danger going in there, right? And I probably just fell of the ladder because I lost balance and when we saw Robert being dragged over the floor into the other room, he was attached to a winch. Is that what you’re saying?”

“Mulder calm down please,” Scully asked looking worried and cautiously placed her hand on his upper arm to draw small circles.

“I… I’m sorry, Scully. I’m just frustrated and tired and the story of Florence, Edward and the baby has obviously touched me more profoundly, than I want to admit.”

“It’s OK and I understand. I am just asking you to keep an open mind.”

“As I do you, Scully!”

Scully sighed but finally nodded.

“What’s in the box?” she asked.

“Florence’s baby.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“I found her baby. It was buried in an anonymous grave in the woods, near the pond. This is what she wants, Scully. All she wants is her baby and I am returning it to her.”

“Mulder, we need to perform an autopsy. Forensic anthropologists have to take a look at the bones. If it was buried in the woods, we need to find out whether the story in the book was the truth. We need to know if it really was a miscarriage or if the baby was murdered out of revenge or hate.”

“I’ll try to convince Florence to let us examine the bones,” Mulder suggested.

“Mulder, you’re talking like she’s alive. If this is not a hoax, you are – in fact – speaking with a deceased person. I doubt you can argue with her.”

“I’ll try, Scully. Trust me, I’ll try. OK?”

Scully shook her head, knowing any discussion would be hopeless at this point.

“Alright. I’ll cover your back. Be careful!”

“I will. Thank you for trusting me on this!” Mulder embraced Scully in a quick hug, picked up the recording devices and the box and went inside, too.


	15. October 29 1997, 06.05 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rescue mission

The air was stale and it was cold. Colder than the other rooms had been.

Mulder knew about this phenomenon when dealing with a ghost.

In contradiction to being a ’hot’-spot, places of strong spiritual activity were indeed colder than their surroundings.

Mulder could see his breath and he felt a chill running down his spine.

He let the beam of his flashlight wander around the suite but just like what he had seen from the outside, the room was completely empty.

Mulder placed two of the devices outside of the adjacent room and put his own voice recorder in his pocket.

In lack of a better idea on how to approach, he gently knocked on the door to Florence’s bedroom.

“Florence, it’s me. I am coming in now.”

Mulder turned the knob and was surprised how easily the door opened.

A surge of cold air escaped but this time, he guessed it came from the smashed window.

Carefully, he entered, looked around and froze dead in his tracks.

On the wall opposite the window hung Robert in a mock image of a crucifixion.

It looked like his body was glued to the wall, with no visible attachments or ropes of any kind.  
The force that had pulled him in, still appeared to be holding him in its grip, pushing him to and up the wall.

Mulder slowly approached him and put his hand to Robert’s chest to check for a heartbeat and was relieved when he felt it weak and irregular but definitely present.

Suddenly, the door slammed shut behind him.

Fighting the raising panic, he looked further around and finally noticed Carol crouching in a corner by the window. She stared at him, her eyes wide open.

“Carol?” Mulder cautiously moved over to her. “Carol can you hear me? It’s Fox Mulder. I’m here to get you and Robert out of here,” he whispered in her ear, while gently stroking her hair.

Suddenly, Carol gripped Mulder’s wrist and held it like a vice.

Her unseeing eyes focused on him and turned into something else. Something out of this world.

Wind arose and swirled around, making noises like human screams.

“I want my baby,” Carol hissed over the noise in a voice that wasn’t her own.

Mulder fought the urge to jump back and tried to stay calm.

“Florence? Florence, I found our baby,” he shouted. “Like you asked me to. I found your baby! I brought it with me. Look, your baby is here!”

He had carried the baby’s coffin under his arm from where he now pulled it out and presented it to Carol/Florence.

“Let go of my hand Florence and I’ll show it to you. Please! You asked me to help you. I held my word and I’m asking the same of you now in return.”

Arguing with a ghost. Scully would get a kick out of this!

Carol/Florence regarded the metal box and seemed to consider whether or not to trust this stranger.

Finally, she let go of Mulder’s wrist and the storm vanished and Mulder was able to carefully remove the lid.

Once she realized what was in the box, Carol/Florence let out a desperate howl, full of pain and grief.

With shaking hands, she took the box in her hands, cradling it like it was the baby itself.  
Mulder didn’t leave her but sat down beside her, feeling her emotions run through his own body.

“I am so sorry Florence,” he said with a lump in his throat.

Carol/Florence, who seemed to have forgotten he was around at all, looked up at him.

“I want her to to be me for eternity!” Her voice was hoarse and very quiet.

“We can arrange that, Florence. I promise you that I will bury your child in your grave at the cemetery. You will never be apart again! But you need to trust me. Florence, you must let us go,” Mulder demanded.

Much to his surprise, Carol/Florence nodded and let out a sigh that came from her core and then slumped.

++++

“Carol?” Mulder stroked her head. “Carol, come back to me.”

Slowly, Carol opened her eyes.

“Agent Mulder?” she asked disoriented.

“Yes, it’s me. Can you get up?”

“I think so. What is this?” Carol asked, still holding the metal box in her hands.

“I’ll explain later. Put it down carefully and then walk out of here.”

“Where is Robert?”

“He’s here, too. I’ll help him but you need to get out of here, now,” he ordered, secretly hoping the door would open.

Carol got up and staggered towards the door. Hallelujah, it did.

Mulder turned around and pointed the beam towards the wall where Robert had been crucified. Instead of being stuck to the wall, he now laid on the floor. Florence had kept her word.

The agent unceremoniously took the unconscious man by the legs and was moving to leave, when his eyes fell on the metal box.

A greenish glow emanated from it and from one second to the other, Florence’s ghost appeared and reached inside.

Mulder was smitten by what he witnessed.

From the box that had only held bones, came a baby.

Florence picked it up in her arms and joyfully rocked it. Mulder couldn’t turn his eyes from the scene and when Florence noticed him, she smiled and Mulder couldn’t but smile back at her.

“Thank you for keeping your promise,” he said “as I’ll keep mine. I’ll unite you with your baby forever.”

He watched as Florence and her baby slowly vanished before he finally pulled Robert out back into the hall.


	16. October 29 1997, 06.30 am

After Mulder saved Robert, he returned to the bedroom once again to get the metal box. He was determined to keep his word. He then picked up the recording devices as well.

In the meantime, Robert had regained consciousness but was still wobbly on his feet.

They gathered their belongings and moved back to the lobby where they sat down in front of the fire that had almost burned down.

“I can’t remember much,” Carol explained. “I recall wanting to go to bed but something – I have no better word for it – ‘called’ me upstairs. I remember standing in front of a door and then nothing.”

“Why did she pick Carol?” Robert asked.

“As bad as it sounds, I think that you were at the wrong place at the wrong time. Today, er yesterday was the anniversary of Florence's suicide. I think that's why the lodge was closed. The owners of this place know it’s haunted. My guess is that Florence’s telepathic powers spike on this day and that she was able to control your mind Carol. She drew you to her. I don’t know what exactly her plan was, obviously she’s able to possess people but it’s not clear to me whether she simply wanted to possess you or steal the…,” Mulder paused before he carefully asked “Carol, may I ask if you’re pregnant?”

Carol looked up surprised.

“I haven’t told anybody!”

“We are having a baby?” Robert exclaimed. “Oh my god, honey! This is great news! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

“I’m still in my first trimester and I wanted to be absolutely sure nothing would go wrong before I told you. I’m sorry, darling!”

Robert embraced his wife in a hug and kissed her.

“I understand honey. I love you and I am so happy to become a father. You make me the happiest man on earth!”

“Whoa! What’s that?” Jesse interrupted the emotional scene. “Where did you guys suddenly come from?”

“Morning Jesse. Seems like you missed quite a show,” Mulder greeted.

“Yeah dude, seems like it. Glad to have you guys back! Hope you’re alright? What about the ghost and all?”

“Sit down, Jesse. Mulder was just explaining what he thought was going on and we haven’t yet listened to the tapes as well,” Scully said.

"Like I just said," Mulder continued while Jesse sat down with the others, "I don’t know what exactly her plan was, whether she wanted to possess you or steal the baby from you. I’m sorry, I have no explanation for it."

"I want to listen to the tapes, I also have no idea what went on after she dragged me into that room." Robert said worriedly.

Mulder nodded and rewound the tapes. They quietly listened to them, Robert and Carol held on to each other like a lifeline.

"Wow, that's some weird shit," Jesse exclaimed when they had finished, "too bad I missed it."  
"I'd like to go home now," Carol tiredly said to Robert.

"You should go to a hospital Carol and let yourself and your baby get checked. You've been under a lot of stress and you should rule out that it had an effect on the fetus," Scully suggested.

"That was my plan, Agent Scully," Robert explained. "I'll take her to the hospital right away. Do need to take our statement or anything?"

"Just tell us where we can find you, in case any questions occur," Mulder asked.

"Sure. Here's my card. So, I'm guessing this is it then. What a.... strange night," Robert got up and then helped his wife to her feet.

"Thank you, Agent Scully, Agent Mulder," Carol said honestly, shaking the agents' hands.  
"Take care of yourself and your baby, Carol! You, Robert, take care of your family and all the best to the three of you," Mulder smiled and then turned to shake Jesse's hand as well.  
"I'll join you, and make sure you'll get to your car alright," Jesse offered and Robert agreed thankfully.

They bid their farewells and then Robert, Carol and Jesse left to hike back to their vehicles.

++++

“What about us, Mulder?” Scully asked after the lodge had fallen silent again. “Is there anything else you’d like to investigate?”

“I think, we’re done here. If you could add to the note that the door and the window are smashed and that we’ve gone to the police?”

“Do you want me to write anything about the ghost?”

“I’ll open an X-File on this one and will probably return one day to see if this place is still haunted, but I believe that Florence is gone. You can write that on your note. That Florence is gone.”


	17. October 29 1997, 11.30 am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reunited.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it, you did it ;) Thank you very much for reading! If you like, tell me what you think - I'm happy to receive feedback! Have a great weekend everyone!

The highway had been cleared, so Mulder and Scully easily drove into the next town.

The Sheriff of Chesterfield was surprised to have to FBI agents standing in his office, filing a report and telling him about the troubled night they had.

He didn’t laugh when Mulder told him about the ghost.

In fact, it was a common tale in this area that people had been telling each other and the tourists for a long time.

He admitted though, that he never really believed in it.

When Mulder took out the tape recorders to play the tapes, Scully held him back and told him it was over. Mulder just nodded.

They had left the Sheriff’s office after they asked him for directions to the local cemetery. 

Mulder hadn’t told him what exactly he wanted to do there but said that he was curious to visit Florence’s grave.

Scully raised an eyebrow at him when he told her he wouldn’t go through the proceedings to have a forensic anthropologist look at the bones. He knew the baby hadn’t been killed, Scully had to believe him.

Now it was 11.30 am and they were standing in front of Florence’s humble grave in a secluded part of Chesterfield cemetery, where the poor or the nameless had been buried.

On their way, they had discovered Edward’s grave – he hadn’t been buried with his wife but also not with his lover. It was an impressive marble stone with wrought-iron letters. 

Something worthy of a well-respected member of the community.

Mulder pushed the spade he had taken with him in the ground and dug a hole big enough to accommodate the small metal box.

He gently put it in and then filled the hole again. Finally, he placed a single rose on the fresh grave.

“I hope Florence finds peace now,” he said quietly.

Scully gently took his hand and squeezed it before she finally said “Let’s go Mulder, we’ve got a plane to catch.”

++++

End


End file.
